Guwahati, June 21: An
expert panel has recommended installation of additional safety measures
on the runway of Lengpui airport in Mizoram to avert incidents of planes
overshooting the strip and crashing like it happened with a Cessna
aircraft last year.

The panel, constituted by the Directorate
General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to probe the Cessna aircraft crash,
recommended construction of safety areas at each end of the tabletop
runway to help avert future disasters.

The runway-end safety area is a paved zone meant to reduce chances of damage if a plane overshoots the runway.

The panel, headed by former Indian Air
Force safety head Air Marshal (retd) P.S. Ahluwalia, said in its report
that the Lengpui runway did not have the end areas, which, if available,
would increase the level of safety of the airport.

According to DGCA norms, a runway-end
safety area should extend from the end of a runway strip to a distance
of at least 90 metres and its width should be at least twice that of the
runway.

On May 4 last year, the small Cessna
Caravan aircraft owned by private airliner North East Shuttles Pvt Ltd
had overshot the runway and crashed into a 60-foot-deep ravine, injuring
nine passengers. The plane, too, suffered substantial damage.

Lengpui airport is owned by the Mizoram government and is licensed by the DGCA for public use.

The probe panel, with Capt. Sanjay Verma
and K.B. Batra as the other two members, found that though the
instrument landing system (ILS) was installed at the airport in 2008, it
had not been commissioned till the date of the accident.

The report said the present location of
air traffic control (ATC) tower did not permit full view of the runway
towards the end because of the presence of a high hillock between the
tower and the runway.

It added that though the lack of the
instrument landing system and part visibility of the runway were not the
contributing factors in the crash, corrective action regarding these
lacunae would increase the airport’s safety.

According to an official source, the
Lengpui airport can be considered critically placed, as its tabletop
runway did not have runway-end safety areas and its technical facilities
were not enough.

Tabletop runways are those that are carved
out of hilltops, are surrounded by gorges and offer little space for
planes to manoeuvre in case it overshoots the runway while landing.

The probe panel has, however, held “inadequate skill level of the pilot” responsible for the last year’s accident.

The inquiry revealed that the pilot was
not cleared, in accordance with DGCA regulations, to operate in airports
situated on hilly terrain.

The report said the pilot had not
completed the regulatory 100 hours of flying mandatory for undertaking
solo flights and added the operator, North East Shuttles Pvt Ltd, had
also failed to ensure compliance of this norm.

The inquiry committee also recommended upgrade of the Met observatory at Lengpui, as it is not equipped to forecast weather.